Brazil’s President Lula criticizes Russia’s attack on Ukraine
At the end of his state visit to Portugal, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva criticized Russia’s attack on Ukraine. “We condemn Ukraine’s territorial violation and believe in an international order based on law and respect for national sovereignty,” he said Tuesday in Parliament in Lisbon on the 49th anniversary of the so-called Carnation Revolution, which brought Portugal back to democracy. “Military policy directed against a people fighting for their freedom will never be victorious,” Lula said.
Despite his criticism of Russia, Lula, who wants to play a mediating role with China, did not call for Russian troops to withdraw from Ukraine. Instead, he reiterated his call for peace talks. The war “cannot go on indefinitely”. MPs from the right-wing populist Chega party protested against Lula and were called to order by Parliament President Santos Silva.
Silva condemned Russia’s aggression and assured the Ukrainian people of Portugal’s military support. The red carnations that soldiers put in the barrels of their rifles in 1974 when they ended the military dictatorship in Portugal and opened the way back to democracy are a “symbol of freedom” that Ukrainians also aspired to, Silva said.
During a recent visit to China, Lula had caused considerable irritation in the USA and Europe by criticizing the military aid provided by NATO and other countries to Ukraine. “The US needs to stop promoting war and start talking about peace. The EU needs to start talking about peace,” he said. The US accused him of “parroting” Moscow and Beijing propaganda